Trinidad Frausto, the long-time cook and co-owner of the cornerstone downtown restaurant, died Sunday of natural causes at age 73. She was surrounded by her loved ones. Joe's Mexico City Café closed in 2004.

Funeral services were held Friday at St. Edward's Parish.

Frausto, a native of Zacatecas, Mexico, moved to Stockton in 1959 and started working at a poultry company.

She moved on to work in the restaurant business and married Salvador in 1961. Ten years later, the couple partnered with Trinidad's brother, Joe Medina, to purchase Joe's Mexico City Café from the original owner, Joe Sotello. At the time, the restaurant had been serving meals since 1944. The Fraustos eventually bought out Medina.

"For her, running our restaurant was a way to survive and practice patience," Salvador Frausto said. "She sacrificed. She was a responsible person."

Over the years, the family-operated restaurant served generations of customers, from grandparents to grandchildren, from the Stockton area and from around San Joaquin County.

For some, dining at Joe's became a family tradition. The cafe was particularly festive during the Christmas holiday season.

It also was the starting point for employees who eventually opened their own local restaurants, including Xochimilco Restaurant and Santiago's Cocina Mexicana.

Trinidad Frausto, known to most as Trina, was 5 feet tall. Her family says what she lacked in height, she made up with character.

"She had a heart of gold," Salvador Frausto said.

She demonstrated that from an early age. As the eldest daughter growing up, Trinidad Frausto helped care for her siblings. She earned extra money for her family in Mexico by working as a seamstress and by cooking.

Frausto remained a faithful Catholic who attended Mass every day of her life, her family said.

"She was a person of integrity. Compassionate. Loving. And honorable," her husband said.